“Guys seem to want to take runs at him,” Carrick said of Benson. “It’s part of his M.O., I guess.”
“Those are the plays that add up over the course of the game,” added Thompson, who scored his 36th goal in the win. “That’s the type of group that we have: guys that are selfless, that put their body on the line for the betterment of the team.”
Los Angeles challenged that Benson had played the puck with a high stick while entering the zone, but the goal stood, and Rasmus Dahlin padded Buffalo’s lead on the resulting power play. Benson later tacked on an empty netter, and the Sabres extended their road point streak to 13 games (12-0-1).
It was Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s turn in net, and he continued to pull his end of the rope with 26 saves on 27 shots. The one Kings goal came from Artemi Panarin on an early power play, snapping Buffalo’s 175:41 shutout streak (since last Saturday’s second period).
“I don’t think they created scary chances other than on their power play,” Luukkonen said. “I feel like it’s how well our D corps is playing, but (also) how well our forwards are tracking back and helping the D corps. And the goalies, too. It’s a full-team effort, and I think it shows on the scoreboard.”
The Kings managed just 19 shots at 5-on-5. With quick breakouts from the defensive zone, Buffalo kept things moving in the right direction for most of the game.
“Our D have really surprised me with just how well we can break the puck out with them,” Carrick said. “They go back for pucks a lot. They’re just so good at shoulder-checking, reading what the forecheck is, and then just figuring out a way to escape it. … When you can break the puck out like that, you can really frustrate the other team’s forecheck.”
The Sabres have allowed just 1.92 goals per game en route to a 12-1-0 record since the Olympic break. It’s a winning formula now, and it should be in the playoffs next month, as well.
Here’s more from the win.